Barcelona Sells To Al Hilal, Vitor Roque Follows Senior Neymar

Barcelona striker Vitor Roque. (X/@FCBarcelona)

JAKARTA - Barcelona will sell Brazilian striker Vitor Roque to Saudi Arabian club Al Hilal. Joining Al Hilal makes Roque united with his seniors, Neymar, and a number of other Brazilian players.

Roque seems to be just a 'ngombe attachment' at Barca. He joined last January from Athletico Paranaense with a transfer of 26 million. This is still added to the bonus of the player's appearance.

The Roque recruitment is actually expected to add to the Blaugrana title. Moreover, he is indeed a valuable asset of Brazil. At the old club, he showed his sharpness by scoring 15 goals during Brazil's Serie A 25 matches in 2023.

Namun bintang muda ini mengalami kesulitan di La Liga Spanyol. Roque yang masih berusia 19 hanya dua kali melakukan starter.

Old coach Xavi Hernandez did not give Roque the opportunity to play because he relied more on veteran striker Robert Lewandowski. Since making his debut when he appeared as a substitute against Las Palmas, January 4, 2024, Roque has finally played 14 times at Barca. He also only scored two goals.

When Xavi was fired and replaced by Hansi Flick, Roque's fate remained uncertain. Moreover, the former Bayern Munich coach did not include Roque in the team design.

Having failed to get a chance to play, Barca decided to release Roque. The club hopes that Roque's sales will become an important asset to hunt down two target players, Dani Olmo and Nico Williams.

Roque, which is only six months at Barca, is actually in demand by a number of European clubs, including Manchester United and Lazio. However, the clubs prefer to borrow it first before signing him permanently.

The problem is, Los Cules is reluctant to use a loan system because they need fresh funds to buy players. The offer finally came from Al Hilal who was interested in signing Roque. The club, as stated by Football Espana, did not object to Barca's asking price.

If Barca accepts Al Hilal's offer, Roque will unite with his senior, Neymar. Last season, Al Hilal bought Neymar from Paris Saint-Germain.

However, Neymar, who had played five times in the Pro Arab League, then suffered an ACL injury while strengthening the Brazilian national team. As a result, he ended the season early and had to rest for a long time.

Neymar has indeed recovered and will return this season. Apart from him, there are other Brazilian players, Renan Lodi, Malcolm and Michael who last season brought Al Hilal to league champions.